Happy Friday! August has arrived, which implies lawmakers have formally blown this pop stand of a moist swamp and headed again house. A fast programming word: I’ll be following their lead, which implies the Breeze can be on a quick hiatus for Aug. 9 and Aug. 16. I’ll be again in your inboxes on Aug. 23, so don’t miss me an excessive amount of.
Now that housekeeping is out of the way in which, right here’s what you could have missed this week.
To the shock of nobody, each nights of the Democratic debates closely featured assaults over well being care, which has grow to be an nearly shorthand for the division within the get together between progressives and moderates.
On Night 1, Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) stood like unmovable twin pillars defending “Medicare for All” in opposition to jabs from their rivals. The progressive well being care plan was slammed as “political suicide” and an overreach through which the left would possibly as properly “FedEx the election to Donald Trump.” The dialog dominated the complete first half-hour of the talk, an indication of simply how risky the problem is — and the way it’s unlikely to fade into the shadows anytime quickly.
The second night time pitted former Vice President Joe Biden in opposition to Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), who had simply earlier within the week launched her own health plan. (The SparkNotes: It retains non-public insurers but additionally expands Medicare and can be phased in over 10 years.) The barbs weren’t fairly as sharp on the second night time, however the clear divide between the flanks of the get together was solidified.
Other notable issues popping out of the talk nights:
• Why aren’t the candidates speaking about preexisting circumstances? Is there simply an excessive amount of else happening? The difficulty helped create a cohesive, easy-to-understand message for the Democrats throughout the midterms, but it took till Night 2 earlier than the favored subject was talked about in any of the debates.
Bloomberg: Democrats’ Health-Care Feud Eclipses Message That Won in 2018
• The temperature has most undoubtedly shifted on gun management up to now 10 years. Even reasonable Montana Gov. Steve Bullock spoke about the necessity to take away the NRA’s affect from D.C. (word: that was taken by some as a sidestep from having to touch upon restrictions, however he didn’t shy from the subject fully as candidates have in elections previous).
• What was lacking? Opioids, Flint (for probably the most half) and drug costs. Although this week’s debates happened in Detroit, not removed from Flint, the water disaster acquired solely a quick point out. The nation is being ravaged by the opioid epidemic, but it’s been talked about by candidates solely in passing. And even the perennial scorching subject of excessive drug costs didn’t spark any memorable moments. We are solely 4 debates in, although, so we’ll verify again in September.
The Washington Post: Black Voters Hear Little in Debate to Excite Them
Vox: The Democratic Debates Mostly Ignored the Opioid Epidemic
The Washington Post: Democrats’ failure to talk about drug prices was ‘a missed opportunity’
For complete roundups of truth checks, scorching takes and play-by-plays, try these Morning Briefing pages.
Meanwhile, insurers are having to carry out a fragile tightrope act because the Democrats put them on blast on a nationwide stage. They wish to battle these plans but additionally keep out of the highlight in case buyers begin getting jittery concerning the prospects of a Medicare for All-type proposal truly passing.
The Wall Street Journal: Health Insurers Walk Delicate Line Against Democrats’ Health Proposals
Medicare has grow to be the belle of the ball for Democrats, however what’s the program actually like? Yes, Medicare is standard, however its has its personal limitations and is unlikely to be a panacea for all of the well being trade’s woes. The fact is, there are vital issues that Medicare at the moment doesn’t cowl, and this system permits for lots of low-value care.
The New York Times: A Question Rarely Asked: What Would Medicare for All Cover?
The New York Times: Medicare for All? For More? Here’s How Medicare Works
Nowadays, if a candidate helps a public choice as an alternative of Medicare for All they’re seen as a reasonable, however that wasn’t all the time the case. Historically, a public choice was a “very progressive policy.”
The Trump administration — some say in an effort to realize floor on well being take care of 2020 — had two large bulletins this week.
The first got here within the form of a federal rule that may drive hospitals to publicly disclose the intently guarded discounted costs they negotiate with insurance coverage firms. The requirement is a part of a broader technique that we’ve seen from the administration that focuses on rising transparency. Critics of the tactic say that due to well being care’s distinctive and complicated make-up, these newly disclosed numbers will be meaningless to sufferers.
Trump additionally managed to hold onto headline house amid the two-night debate extravaganza with the announcement that HHS will arrange a system so Americans can import cheaper medication from Canada. This was an about-face for Secretary Alex Azar, who only a 12 months in the past known as importation a “gimmick.” Don’t assume that is going to be a free-for-all, although. There are fairly a couple of limitations in place. “This is a plan to make a plan on importation,” stated Rachel Sachs, a legislation professor and drug coverage knowledgeable.
The New York Times: Trump Administration Weighs Allowing Drug Imports For Cheaper Prescriptions
Meanwhile, Canadians are like, “Excusez-moi? Keep your mitts off our prescription drugs, please and thank you.”
The Associated Press: Canadians worried by plan to let Americans import drugs
Despite the nationwide outrage over household separations and guarantees from authorities officers that they’re now “rare,” new information reveals almost 1,000 kids have been taken from their dad and mom because the separations had been ordered stopped. Although officers have stated they take the youngsters solely when their security is in query, a have a look at the explanations documented within the new report name that assertion into query. Among the instances was a person who hadn’t modified his sleeping daughter’s moist diaper and a father who misplaced his little one due to a conviction on a cost of malicious destruction of property with alleged harm of $5.
The all the time hotly anticipated annual hospital rankings from U.S. News & World Report dropped this week. The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., nabbed the highest spot on the grownup honor roll, whereas Boston Children’s Hospital ranked first on the youngsters’s checklist.
U.S. News & World Report: Hospital Rankings And Ratings
In the miscellaneous file for the week:
• In the months because the Paradise hearth, I’ve learn some nice play-by-plays, however this one is especially enthralling. This specific tidbit grabbed me: When speaking about giving hearth security tutorials to youngsters, Paradise emergency operations coordinator Jim Broshears stated you’ll all the time get a pupil who retains asking about an increasing number of sophisticated eventualities.
“At some point, they’ve painted you into a corner and, well, do I tell an 8-year-old kid, ‘In that case, you’re going to die?’ Do you tell a community, ‘If this particular scenario hits, a bunch of you are going to die?’ Is that appropriate? I don’t know the answer.” He added, “I think that people are going to conclude that now.”
The New York Times Magazine: ‘We Have Fire Everywhere’: Escaping California’s Deadliest Blaze
• It’s a typical sufficient picture to name up: a boot camp drill sergeant yelling at a soldier, loaded to the gills with gear, to push by means of the warmth. But what occurs when that situation turns deadly? It’s a difficulty that’s changing into extra pressing as temperatures proceed to rise, but an investigation reveals that efforts to forestall deaths have been uneven at greatest.
NBC News: As The World Grows Hotter, The Military Grapples With A Deadly Enemy It Can’t Kill
• What occurs to sufferers when the worth of a month’s provide of a vital psychiatric drug jumps from $16 to $348? “We were seriously looking at dog clomipramine for a patient of mine with OCD,” one psychiatrist stated in response to the worth hikes on the 55-year-old drug. The instance highlights the human toll of what investigators have known as one of the vital “egregious and damaging price-fixing conspiracies” in U.S. historical past.
Bloomberg: Drugmakers’ Alleged Price-Fixing Pushed A Needed Pill Out Of Reach
• Another NYPD police officer dedicated suicide, bringing the full since June as much as 5. The commissioner had already declared a psychological well being disaster earlier than this final dying and urged officers to succeed in out and search assist.
The New York Times: Fifth N.Y.P.D. Officer Since June Dies by Suicide, Police Say
That’s it from me! Have an excellent weekend, and starting of August!